A Good Country Wife
Chapter 371 - 365_1

Chapter 371: Chapter 365_1

Seeing Li Xiaotao’s reaction, it was clear that Zhao Erhu must not have come over; Lin Yue decided not to linger and directly drove the carriage away. Li Xiaotao felt quite frustrated. She had originally planned to mock Lin Yue and then inquire about what exactly was going on, and why they were looking for someone at her house. She didn’t expect Lin Yue to leave so swiftly without her managing to find out anything.

Unable to find anyone in the city, Lin Yue had no choice but to head back home. Perhaps Erhu had already returned, but when she got back, Erhu still hadn’t made it. Where on earth could this man have gone? Didn’t he know she would be worried? Lin Yue was both worried and angry, just hoping that Zhao Erhu would return soon.

"Sister-in-law, are you there?" Li Xiaomei’s voice called out from outside.

Zhao Cheng and Li Xiaomei came by at that time to return their family’s carriage. It turned out that they had borrowed the carriage from Zhao Erhu to visit their maternal home. Erhu had forgotten to tell Lin Yue, so Lin Yue was unaware and had previously thought that Erhu had taken the carriage out since one was missing from the stables. After spending most of the day searching for him in the city, she was even more baffled about where Erhu could have gone. If he hadn’t taken the carriage out, he must have gone somewhere nearby. Lin Yue had no choice but to go door to door to ask, but nobody knew Erhu’s whereabouts.

By noon, just as Lin Yue was about to be driven mad with anxiety, Zhao Erhu finally returned, his face weather-beaten and his clothes dotted with numerous snowflakes. In his hands, he dragged a large and a small wild boar. Lin Yue then realized that in such heavy snow, Zhao Erhu had actually gone hunting in the mountains—that was why he didn’t tell her where he was going; she would have definitely disapproved if she had known.

"Zhao Erhu, you bastard!" Seeing Zhao Erhu, Lin Yue’s worry dissipated, replaced by anger and outrage. This man had gone too far with his unreliable actions, causing her so much worry and even leading her to Li Xiaotao’s place.

"Wife, I’m back now, don’t be mad," Zhao Erhu said with a grin, but since his face was so numb from the cold, his smile was quite stiff.

"You can still smile after doing this? Erhu, do you even care about us at all? How did you promise me last time, you assured me you wouldn’t do anything this dangerous again, to put yourself in harm’s way, yet what have you done now?" Lin Yue yelled angrily. Didn’t he realize how perilous it was to go into the mountains in such heavy snow, and how worried she was for him? The thought of something happening to Zhao Erhu turned Lin Yue’s eyes red with concern.

"Alright, wife, I’m fine, aren’t I? Don’t be upset. I know what I’m doing. I made all the necessary preparations before going into the mountains; there was no danger," Zhao Erhu tried to soothe his little wife, noticing that her eyes were welling up with tears, and wanting to embrace her to offer comfort. However, remembering that he had just come back from the mountain, drenched and dirty with mud and bits of leaves and twigs, he stopped in his tracks.

Lin Yue also noticed Zhao Erhu’s disheveled appearance. As the room was warmer than outside, the snowflakes stuck to him had melted into water. His hair and clothes were soaked. Just standing outside in the cold was chilling enough, let alone spending a night in the mountains. Lin Yue couldn’t help but feel heartache as she thought about how he managed to endure it. This man didn’t know how to take care of his health; regardless of how strong his body was, it couldn’t withstand such torment.

"I’ll fetch water; hurry up and change out of your trial clothes. Go warm yourself by the brazier to warm up," Lin Yue said. Even if she was still angry, there were priorities, and now wasn’t the time to settle accounts. Worried that Zhao Erhu might catch cold and harm his body, she quickly fetched hot water for him to wash and change clothes, and she also cooked a big bowl of ginger soup for him to drink.

Seeing his wife bustling around for his sake, Zhao Erhu felt immensely comforted. Though he had suffered from the cold and freezing conditions in the mountains all day and night, it was all worth it for his little wife. He hadn’t planned to go hunting in the mountains on such a snowy day. He had asked many households, even visiting the neighboring villages, but since there were no pigs for sale, he had no choice but to hunt wild boar in the mountains. Fortunately, he was lucky and caught two in one go. Tomorrow, they would have a lively pig-slaughtering feast to make his little wife happy, so she wouldn’t have to be envious of others.

"Wife, you’re really good to me. How did I manage to marry such a virtuous wife like you?" Zhao Erhu sighed and spoke his heart out, also hoping to appease his little wife and to keep her from being angry over this incident. Given his understanding of her, after the big temper she had just thrown, this was not going to be easily forgotten.

Lin Yue ignored Zhao Erhu’s sweet words, her face still cold. "You mustn’t have eaten anything proper in the mountains. I’ve made you a bowl of egg noodles. Make do with that and fill your stomach for now."

After Zhao Erhu had his fill, Lin Yue started to reconcile accounts with him. "Zhao Erhu, tell me, why did you go to the mountains, and why didn’t you tell me where you were going? Don’t you know how worried the kids and I were when you didn’t come back last night? Today we searched for you all over the city. If you hadn’t come back, I wouldn’t know what to do. Just for two wild boars, you’ve made us go through such fear and anxiety. We’re not lacking that little money at home. What were you really thinking?" As Lin Yue spoke, her anger began to flare up again.

Hearing that Lin Yue had braved the cold snow to look for him in the city, Zhao Erhu felt remorseful. He had been too careless and hadn’t made good arrangements, which had caused his little wife to worry. He had intended to make a quick trip and return by evening, but had unexpectedly spent a night longer in the mountains.

"Wife, I’m sorry, I made you worry. I had planned to go early in the morning and be back by evening, but I got delayed," Zhao Erhu said, trying to pull his little wife into his arms. But she was still angry and naturally wouldn’t cooperate, so Zhao Erhu didn’t dare to force her and instead looked at Lin Yue with an apologetic smile.

"Wife, stop pouting. Don’t you think it’s festive and lively to slaughter a pig for the New Year? I was lucky this time and brought home two wild boars. I’ll invite everyone this afternoon, and have them come over tomorrow for the pig-slaughtering feast. You won’t have to look on with envy anymore," Zhao Erhu said.

Lin Yue shuddered at his words, suddenly understanding why Zhao Erhu had done what he did. She had always known that Zhao Erhu was not thoughtless or crude, so why would he go hunting in the mountains on such a snowy day? "So, you went hunting in the mountains just to fulfill my wish?"

Lin Yue asked incredulously, though her heart already knew the answer. This was the only explanation for Zhao Erhu’s actions. Her eyes reddened in an instant, emotions running high. "Zhao Erhu, why are you so foolish? What if something had happened to you in the mountains with all this snow? Why are you so good to me?"